CAMPAIGNING FOR ENDANGERED HERITAGE
Europa Nostra actively follows developments on the international heritage scene and policy developments affecting the conservation and restoration of heritage. Requests for intervention are submitted directly or through Europa Nostra's Council members and after thorough study of the dossiers by the Management Committee, a decision is taken by the Council as to the best action to undertake.
When issues affecting heritage require special international attention due to their importance Europa Nostra can resort to launching a campaign mobilising its council members and other interested parties to form a special committee to follow the matter closely and issue directives for further action.
EUROPA NOSTRA CAMPAIGNS
2005 - present: The safeguard of unique Roman Baths at Allianoi, Turkey
2007: Moscow Modern Movement Architecture under Threat
2007: Appeal for the safeguarding of the historic core of St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
2006: Appeal for the Protection of Cultrual Property in Israel and Lebanon
2005/6: Reduced VAT rate for renovation of historic buildings
2005/6: Cultural Heritage in Kosovo
2005: Europa Nostra Declaration on Safeguarding Coastal Culture: English Dutch Spanish
2005: Appeal against high-rise buildings in Copenhagen's historic centre
2004: Appeal for the protection of Tara River Canyon in Montenegro
2004: Threat to Rosia Montana and King Carol I Park, Romania
2004: Churches damaged and destroyed in Kosovo (Serbia and Montenegro)
2003: The Apostolos Andreas Monastery (Cyprus)
2001: Mont Blanc and the Alpine Region need a transport policy that respects the environment
2000: Campaign for the Protection of the Marathon Historic Site and the Schinias Wetland
1996 - 2000: Campaign for a Reduced Rate of VAT for Heritage Restoration and Maintenance Work
1999: Heritage at Risk in Kosovo Resolution
Rosia Montana and King Carol I Park, Romania (2004)
In a letter to the then President of Romania, Ion Iliescu, Europa Nostra expressed serious concern over the plan to grant permission for large scale, open cast gold mine activities in Rosia Montana, a mountainous region in Transylvania, well-known for its rich archaeology, and urged the President to use his authority to avert the project. Despite many protests - including concerns voiced by the European Parliament - the case has not yet been satisfactorily settled. Europa Nostra and its Romanian member organisations are continuing to monitor the situation closely.
Plans to construct a new Cathedral of the Nation in the protected King Carol I Park in the very centre of Bucharest (Romania) triggered many local protests which were supported by Europa Nostra in a letter to the then Culture Minister of Romania, Mr Razvan Theodorescu. After the 2004 general elections changed the political constellation, the new administration agreed with the Romanian Orthodox Church on the alternative location for the construction of the Cathedral, as proposed by Europa Nostra and its member organisations in Romania.
Europa Nostra wrote to Mr Dick Roche, Irish Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government concerning the threat arising from the proposed construction of a four-storey hotel next to Trim Castle, Co. Kildare, winner of a European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Award in 2002. In his reply, the Minister informed Europa Nostra that he did not have the power to revoke a decision that had been made by his predecessor. Meanwhile, local campaigners have included Europa Nostra’s observations in a complaint about the procedure followed by Irish authorities concerned which they have sent to the European Commissioner for the Environment, Mr Stravros Dimas.
The Apostolos Andreas Monastery, Cyprus - two letters sent resulted in success
Upon request of the Council, the Executive President wrote a letter to the President of Cyprus, Mr Tassos Papadopoulos expressing Europa Nostra’s concern with the proposed restoration of the Apostolos Andreas Monastery. The plans endorsed by UNOPS foresaw works to the 19th century addition to the Monastery complex, which according to many was in no need of restoration, whereas no work was scheduled to the 15th-century church, which was in dire need of repair. Europa Nostra’s letter received important coverage in the Cyprus press. Following a second Executive Presidential letter sent to the President of Cyprus in February 2004, reiterating Europa Nostra’s concern with the neglect of the 15th century church, UNOPS withdrew the contentious plan.
Mont Blanc and the Alpine Region need a transport policy that respects the environment
Ahead of the re-opening of the Mont Blanc tunnel in March 2002, H.H. Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan, President of the Bellerive Foundation and Europa Nostra's Executive President, Daniel Cardon de Lichtbuer met Mrs. Loyola de Palacio, European Commissioner responsible for Transport, to voice their concerns about the imminent environmental and health effects of increased lorry traffic through the alpine valleys that would result from the tunnel re-opening. They proposed the introduction of effective alternatives for reducing the emission of toxic exhausts, particularly by increasing the so-called ferroutage or transport of lorries by train across the Alps and called for a European transport policy respectful of the environment.
2000 Campaign for the Protection of the Marathon Historic Site and the Schinias Wetland
Upon request of Mr Costa Carras, Vice-President of Europa Nostra, representing Elliniki Etairia, a Resolution was adopted demanding that urgent action be taken to ensure the protection of the Marathon Historic Site and Schinias Wetland, currently threatened by the proposed development of the area for the 2004 Olympic Games. The Greek Government and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had planned the construction of a permanent rowing facility in view of the 2004 Olympic Games. The location selected for this future rowing facility possesses great historical value (Marathon) and is an ecological area of international importance (Schinias wetland). Four Greek conservation organisations have joined their efforts to save the site but experience great difficulty in getting their message across to the Greek authorities and the public. The organisations therefore sought international support for their campaign, in the expectation that the Greek Prime Minister, the President of the IOC and the Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs will be sensitive to international pressure.
Europa Nostra therefore wrote a Resolution that was sent to the Greek Prime Minister and to the President of the IOC. The campaign was further backed by an email and letter campaign.
There were three substantial successes: The Olympic slalom event was removed from a site close to Marathon. Parts of the plain where the initial engagement had been fought in 490BC were declared a protected archaeological site. Most importantly, the Greek Government agreed in 2002 that the Schinias wetland site would be included in the EU NATURA 2000 list of protected areas. The campaign stirred up further commotion in 2002 when excavations for the Olympic Rowing Centre lakes uncovered buildings of the second millennium BC, finally refuting original official claims that the area had been sea in antiquity, including at the time of the Marathon battle. Europa Nostra continues to follow this matter closely, together with its Greek member organisation that has participated in the campaign since its inception.
1996-2000: Campaign for a Reduced Rate of VAT for Heritage Restoration and Maintenance Work
The campaign for a reduced rate of value added tax (VAT) on Heritage restoration and maintenance work, which Europa Nostra had been waging since the beginning of 1998, has been marked with some success. At the informal meeting of Finance Ministers of the European Union on 11 & 12 September at Turku (Finland), it was unanimously decided to introduce, for a trial period of three years, a reduction in the VAT rate for, particularly, the renovation and repair of private dwellings in those member States that so wished. France was among the first countries to take advantage of this, by announcing a 5.5 % VAT rate on this kind of renovation work. Europa Nostra continues to lobby the European Institutions for the need, when the outcome of the three-year trial period is evaluated, to make a special case for historic houses within the generic category of privately-owned houses, and to extend this VAT reduction to all heritage restoration work in general, whether dwellings are involved or not.
Heritage at Risk in Kosovo
At its meeting in May 1999 the General Assembly of Europa Nostra approved its Council's resolution on the effects of the recent armed conflict on the built and natural heritage of Kosovo. In this resolution Europa Nostra, while recognising the overall dominance of the human side of this tragedy, stresses that the resettlement and reconciliation of its peoples will be infinitely more difficult if their heritage is damaged or destroyed. Europa Nostra, acting in concert particularly with ICOMOS, has stressed to the European authorities the importance of sending a group of independent experts to Kosovo to assess the damage and make recommendations. The European Commission, liaising with the Council of Europe has recently agreed the despatch of such a group. Consultation with representatives of European civil society, which would include Europa Nostra, is expected.
